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VMware is for the first time inviting anyone to beta test the next version of vSphere, the company's virtualization platform.

The company is hoping to learn more about how organizations use vSphere under real-world conditions and test cases, it said. As VMware has expanded beyond server virtualization to set its sights on the whole datacenter, it has become more important for the company to get feedback from a larger group.

To lure enterprises, VMware is pitching the vSphere Beta program as a way to get a head start and a chance to affect product development. Those who take part will also get to collaborate with other participants, learning about their use cases, and share feedback, VMware said.

While VMware is opening up the beta to a wider audience the company still aims to keep functionality secret until the successor to vSphere 5.5 is launched. To download the beta, users have to agree not to talk about the product with anyone who isn't taking part in the program.

The vSphere Beta program has no end date, but VMware strongly encourages feedback in the first four to six weeks of the program, it said. The U.S. edition of this year's VMworld, at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, will open its doors on Aug. 24.